Prosecutors are seeking a year-long jail sentence for a Lovell man who exposed himself in two public places in 2023.

At a Wednesday hearing in Park County Circuit Court, Dennis Thompson pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of public indecency, admitting that he exposed and sexually touched himself while inside his vehicle and view of other drivers.

One incident took place on May 1, while he was stopped at a traffic light on Cody’s Sheridan Avenue, and the other occurred on May 29, while he was parked at the Powell Albertsons. In both instances, Thompson was observed by women in nearby vehicles.

The witness to the May 29 incident at Albertsons recorded Thompson’s license plate and Powell police intercepted Thompson as he was leaving the parking lot. Officer Trevor Carpenter said he told the suspect that “he couldn’t be doing these obscene activities in the public.”

Thompson “replied with something to the effect of, ‘I know,’” and turned over a sex toy he’d been using, according to an affidavit submitted by Carpenter.

Thompson and his court-appointed attorney, Travis Smith, later sought to suppress the incriminating statements he’d made to Carpenter, arguing his constitutional rights had been violated and that his admissions weren’t voluntary. However, Circuit Court Judge Joey Darrah rejected the request and Thompson decided to plead guilty this week.

There is no plea deal in place, and at Wednesday’s hearing, Deputy Park County Prosecuting Attorney Jack Hatfield argued for the maximum amount of jail time: back-to-back six-month sentences, for a total of a year in jail.

In support of his request, the prosecutor said Thompson has three prior convictions for public indecency: one in Park County in 1998 and two in Big Horn County in 2006. Although the convictions have been spread over an extended period of time, “Mr. Thompson is clearly a serial offender,” Hatfield said.

The jail time seems like the only thing “that’s going to get his attention to stop doing this in public,” Hatfield said, adding that after five convictions, “this needs to stop.”

Judge Darrah did not hand down a sentence on Wednesday, as Smith requested more time to research Thompson’s past convictions and present his own  recommendation. A sentencing hearing is now scheduled for March 20.

In the meantime, Thompson remains free on a $3,000 bond.